The Iranian musician who killed three fellow-rock-and-rollers from the Islamic nation was retaliating for being kicked out of their band, police have revealed.

Authorities say Ali Akbar Mahammadi Rafie opened fire before dawn Monday in the Brooklyn, New York, apartment where the members of the group Yellow Dogs lived. He shot two men in their bedrooms and a third in the living room before fleeing to the roof and turning the gun on himself.

He used a .308-caliber Century Arms semi-automatic rifle, which police believe he carried to the murder scene in a guatar case.

He shot the band’s 27-year-old guitarist, Soroush Farazmand, in a second-floor bedroom and then climbed to the third floor where he killed singer Ali Eskandarian, 35, and drummer Arash Farazmand - who were brothers.

He also shot Sasan Sadeghpourosko, 22, twice in the arm outside the building. He was not believed to be in the band.
Rafie was kicked out of the band after stealing 'money and equipment, and he didn’t live up to his end of the bargain,' a police source told the New York Post.

Band manger Ali Salehezadeh said the shooter knew the victims but hadn't spoken to them in months because of a 'petty conflict.'
According to the Post, Sadeghpourosko fought the gunman for his rifle after he was shot twice in the arm.

During the struggle, the shooter told the fellow-Iranian, 'Why did you bring me over here [from Iran] and then throw me out,' according to the Post.

The band’s Facebook page identifies other members as guitarist Siavash Karampour and bassist Koory Mirz, who were not injured.

Commissioner Raymond Kelly said it appeared to be a dispute over money, but police were investigating the motive as well as the relationships between the victims and the shooter.

The four victims lived in a row house in East Williamsburg, an industrial neighborhood home to mostly warehouses where artists can rent cheaper space than in trendier parts of the city.

The shooting happened shortly after midnight. Kelly said the gunman opened fire with a Century Sporter .308-calibery semi-automatic weapon through a window, then went inside and continued firing.

He was then found on the roof with a self-inflicted shot to the head, police said.

An assault-style rifle was found next to the body. Kelly said it had been purchased in upstate New York in 2006 and police were investigating its history.

The Yellow Dogs played recent gigs in New York at indie rock venues like the Knitting Factory and Brooklyn Bowl, and their dance music sound is a little like Joy Division.

Originally from Tehran, they were the subject of a 2009 film, No One Knows about Persian Cats, which told the semi-fictional tale of a band that played illegal rock shows in Tehran.

Photographer Danny Krug said they were nice guys who held down day jobs and played music at night.

'Originally they were from Iran, and they just wanted to play rock music,' said Krug, 24, who lives in Brooklyn. 'And you can't do that there, so they managed to make their way over here.'

The band often threw parties at their apartment, Krug said.

Martin Greenman, 63, works around the corner from the shootings and said he would see the band members coming and going with their instruments.

'They seemed really nice, not violent or anything, just your typical guys,' he said. 'They never caused any trouble. I see them almost every day, it's really a shock.'
The members of the Yellow Dogs are Koory Mirz, Arash Farazmand, Siavash Karampour and Soroush Farazmand.

In February, The Yellow Dogs told Now This News that they left Iran on an artist visa and then received political asylum from the U.S. government. They believed that if they returned to Iran they might be killed.

A neighbor, known only as Frank, told the NY Post that he had been disturbed by a number of parties at the building recently.
He said: 'During the summer, it was ongoing, really loud parties with the street blocked off by (illegal) cabs. It was the usual hipster rave scene.'
Police say officers didn't fire their weapons and reports of sniper fire on them are incorrect.

Accused: Sources identified the gunman in the early Monday killing spree in Brooklyn as Raefe Ahkbar - who turned the gun on himself after shooting three dead

Real life drama: In this Oct. 10, 2008 file photo, Ali Eskandarian performs at Joe's Pub's 10th Anniversary Gala and tribute to Judy Collins at the Public Theater in New York. Eskandarian was shot dead int he attack

Brother: This 2012 photo shows Yellow Dogs band member, drummer Arash Farazmand play at the Death By Audio performance space in the Brooklyn borough of New York. he and his brother Soroush Farazmand were killed

Re: NY- Iranian Musician Killed Three Band Mates After They Kicked Him Out Of B

I live within walking distance from where this all went down. My boyfriend and our roommate weren't allowed to cross over the perimeter that had been secured as a crime scene. They were told someone was on a rooftop shooting at people on the street. They heard there was a cop killing. All total bullshit, the guy was already dead, but they wouldn't let anyone within blocks of the scene for hours.

The following day multiple news outlets misreported the story as a revenge killing, saying that the shooter had recently been kicked out of Yellow Dogs for selling their music gear behind their backs and that he killed the entire rest of the band as retribution. Such bullshit. Everyone is so obsessed with getting the story first that they don't bother to make sure it's the correct story. There were so many poor taste jokes about "dead hipsters" on Facebook and on the comments of the news stories. It was a bummer. Doesn't matter what their band sounded like, doesn't matter if they were "cool", they are dead and it's pretty tragic and shattering.

Anyway, it was a crazy night, police copters everywhere. My boyfriend and our roommate had to sleep at my his shop, they literally couldn't get home.

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Re: NY- Iranian Musician Killed Three Band Mates After They Kicked Him Out Of B

Quote:

Originally Posted by realitynoshow

I live within walking distance from where this all went down. My boyfriend and our roommate weren't allowed to cross over the perimeter that had been secured as a crime scene. They were told someone was on a rooftop shooting at people on the street. They heard there was a cop killing. All total bullshit, the guy was already dead, but they wouldn't let anyone within blocks of the scene for hours.

The following day multiple news outlets misreported the story as a revenge killing, saying that the shooter had recently been kicked out of Yellow Dogs for selling their music gear behind their backs and that he killed the entire rest of the band as retribution. Such bullshit. Everyone is so obsessed with getting the story first that they don't bother to make sure it's the correct story. There were so many poor taste jokes about "dead hipsters" on Facebook and on the comments of the news stories. It was a bummer. Doesn't matter what their band sounded like, doesn't matter if they were "cool", they are dead and it's pretty tragic and shattering.

Anyway, it was a crazy night, police copters everywhere. My boyfriend and our roommate had to sleep at my his shop, they literally couldn't get home.

That's crazy. So if the info published isn't true, what's the real story? Was he kicked out of the band? Is that why he killed those people?

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